Southampton : A brilliant half-century from Deepti Sharma and a fine spell from all-rounder Sneh Rana were the highlights as India secured a four-wicket win over England in the first ODI of the three-match series at Southampton on Thursday.
With this win, Team India leads the series 1-0. England won the toss and opted to bat first. Pacer Kranti Goud reduced England to 20/2, getting rid of openers Tammy Beaumont (5) and Amy Jones (1) quickly.
A 71-run third-wicket stand between Emma Lamb (39 in 50 balls, with four boundaries) and captain Nat Sciver Brunt (41 in 52 balls, with five fours) helped England stabilise before spinner Sneh Rana removed both, reducing them to 97/4 in 20.1 overs.
A century stand for the fourth-wicket between Sophia Dunkley (83 in 92 balls, with nine fours) and Davidson Richards (53 in 73 balls, with two fours) averted any possible disaster while Sophie Ecclestone's quick cameo of 23* took England to a solid 258/6 in 50 overs.
Rana (2/31) and Goud (2/55) took two wickets each, while Amanjot Kaur and Shree Charani got one each. During a chase of 259 runs, openers Pratika Rawal and Smriti Mandhana (28 in 24 balls, with five fours) delivered a solid start with a 48-run stand.
Rawal (36 in 51 balls with three fours) had another 46-run stand with Harleen Deol (27 in 44 balls, with four boundaries), but disaster struck India as they lost Rawal, Deol and skipper Harmanpreet (17) in quick succession, reduced to 124/4 in 27.1 overs.
Jemimah Rodrigues (48 in 54 balls, with five fours) struck an 87-run stand for the fifth wicket with Deepti Sharma, taking the team past 200 runs.While Richa Ghosh was removed early after Jemimah's dismissal, Deepti (62* in 64 balls, with three fours and a six) and Amanjot Kaur (20* in 14 balls with three fours) stuck around to give India a four-wicket win with 10 balls left. Charlie Dean (2/52) was England's top bowler, while Kate Cross, Ecclestone and Lauren Filer got one each.